Both Photos and Lightroom are able to detect when a card reader has been plugged into an iPhone or iPad and a card exists with the correct DCIM format (from a digital camera). I have been unable to find the API that allows an application to do this (except using the standard file import function and making the user navigate to the card). ChatGPT tells me that Photos and Lightroom use a private API that is not made available to normal developers. Does anyone know if this is true - or if not then how to detect that a card is present using Swift?

My software installs a privileged daemon using the SMAppService api. After removing the executables and recompiling the software I sometimes find that it needs to be registered again. After doing this, i.e. ensuring the application is properly registered and enabled in Login Items & Extensions the helper is not run when initiated from XPC. SMAppService.status has returned .enabled, and there is a valid job dictionary for the helper. I check the job dictionary with a function called updatePenaltyBoxStatus() that was given to me by a friend but I think originated from Apple. If I logoff (or reboot), login again, manually open Login Items & Extensions to check registration, then retry the application, it works. I don't mind doing this but it is probably a bit much for a lot of my users. Is there a reliable way to do this programatically? Here is my Swift translation of updatePenaltyBoxStatus. I fetch the job dictionary with SMJobCopyDictionary() prior to calling isInPenaltyBox(). I also had to write C wrapper functions for the WIFEXITED and WIFEXITSTATUS macros. func isInPenaltyBox(_ dict: Dictionary<String, Any>?) -> Bool { guard let jobDict = dict else { // If the helper was in the penalty box, unregistering it doesn't change that. So don't override a previous helperInPenaltyBox value return m_penalty_box } if let lastExitStatusObj = jobDict["LastExitStatus"] as? NSNumber { let lastExitStatus = lastExitStatusObj.intValue if wifexited(Int32(lastExitStatus)) == 0 { // It might've stopped or exited due to a signal or whatever. // Regardless, it didn't meet our criteria for winding up in the penalty box. m_penalty_box = false } // Now get the exit status and check for `EX_CONFIG`. let status = wexitstatus(Int32(lastExitStatus)) let newInPenaltyBox = status == EX_CONFIG if m_penalty_box != newInPenaltyBox { Logger.instance.log( "Penalty box change: " + m_ident + " old: " + String(m_penalty_box) + " new: " + String(newInPenaltyBox)) } m_penalty_box = newInPenaltyBox } return m_penalty_box }

Hi all, I'm the developer of OV Message, an end-to-end encrypted SMS messaging app already shipped on Google Play (Android, where it natively encrypts SMS content). The iOS port aims to be the default carrier-messaging app, handling SMS, MMS, and RCS through TelephonyMessagingKit with the com.apple.developer.carrier-messaging-app entitlement under the EU programme. While testing the cold-launch flow on iOS 26.x, I've hit a reproducible bug that silently drops the first SMS/MMS/RCS that wakes the app, and I'd like to confirm whether other devs working with this API see the same. The bug When a default carrier-messaging app is force-killed and a message arrives, iOS correctly: Routes the message via CommCenter (IMS in my case — SFR France) Wakes the app in background (state = .background at didFinishLaunchingWithOptions) Acquires a TelephonyMessaging runningboard assertion on the app But CommCenter then pushes the pending message via XPC before the client TMK library has finished registering its messageHandlersByID dictionary. Result: client responds Received unhandled request, server logs TMKXPCError Code=2, message is dropped, never delivered to for await in incomingMessageNotifications. Subsequent messages (with the app warm) work fine. Native log sequence (from idevicesyslog with the Telephony logging profile) T+0.000 CommCenter: SMS arrives via IMS (k3GPP) T+0.003 CommCenter: Default app is set to com.example.app T+0.004 CommCenter: Attempting to launch and acquire process assertion T+0.083 CommCenter: Notifying SMS message received, target: bundleID=... T+0.085 CommCenter(TMK): There are no client connections matching, pending message [~125 ms — app boots] T+0.128 App(TMK): Configuring connection T+0.128 App(TMK): Pinging remote end T+0.130 CommCenter(TMK): Received new connection from PID T+0.130 CommCenter(TMK): New incoming connection, flushing pending messages (1) ← server flushes T+0.130 App(TMK): Received unhandled request ← client not ready T+0.131 CommCenter(TMK): Failed to send pending message: TMKXPCError Code=2 T+0.132 App(TMK): Registered for IncomingMessageNotification (smsReceived) ← ~2 ms too late The race window between Pinging remote end (client) and Registered for IncomingMessageNotification (client) is 2–7 ms across my measurements. CommCenter considers the connection ready as soon as the ping completes, but the client library populates messageHandlersByID slightly after, so the dispatch fails. Minimal reproduction I built a ~50-line Swift app to confirm this isn't specific to OV Message. UIKit AppDelegate, single for await in TelephonyMessagingSession.shared.smsService.incomingMessageNotifications started in didFinishLaunchingWithOptions. No SwiftUI, no other modules, no Darwin notifications. Just TMK. Steps: Build & install on iPhone iOS 26.x with carrier-messaging-app entitlement (auto-provisioned in iOS 26) Settings → Apps → Default Messaging → select the test app Force-kill, then send 2 SMS in rapid succession from another phone Wait 30 s, open the app — log shows only the 2nd SMS Same result: the 1st SMS is gone. I've reproduced this consistently dozens of times. Source code (Swift + xcodegen project.yml): https://gist.github.com/ovmessage/fbc529292a65222191bec6ce5e5a4275 What I've tried Task.detached(priority: .userInitiated) to decouple the for await from main thread scheduling — no effect (race is internal to TMK lib, before our scheduling) Pre-fetching cellularServices synchronously — no effect Subscribing MMS + RCS in parallel — no effect Direct XPCSession/xpc_connection_create_mach_service to com.apple.commcenter.tmk.xpc — Apple has marked these unavailable on iOS for 3rd-party apps (no public way to bypass the lib) I've also done runtime introspection of the TMK framework via Mirror, which confirms the architecture: a single XPCConnection.messageHandlersByID dict shared by smsReceived, mmsReceived, rcsReceivedNotification — all four entries (incl. serviceStatusNotification) are populated after the XPC ping. So the same race affects SMS, MMS, and RCS equally. Suggested fixes (Apple-side) Either: Server (CommCenter): defer flushing pending messages until the client confirms its handlers are registered (extra XPC handshake message) Client (TelephonyMessagingKit): register messageHandlersByID entries before sending Pinging remote end, so they exist when the server starts flushing Buffer client-side: cache messages received before handler registration completes, dispatch on attach Filed in Feedback Assistant FB[YOUR_FB_NUMBER_HERE] Question for fellow devs If you're also building with carrier-messaging-app entitlement (Beeper, Google Messages on iOS, anyone in the EU programme), can you confirm whether you see the same race? Especially interested in whether: It happens with non-IMS carriers (mine is SFR France, IMS-routed via SIP) iOS 26.1 / 26.2 changed the timing Anyone has found a workaround I haven't tried Thanks.

Hi everyone, We are investigating a possible iOS permission state issue after a device previously installed our app through TestFlight and later installed the production version from the App Store using the same Bundle ID. Environment: Device: iPhone 15 iOS version: 26.2.1 App distribution history: The app was previously installed through TestFlight and later installed from the App Store Permissions involved: Camera / Photos Issue: When the user opens the App Store version of the app and tries to access a feature that requires Camera or Photos permission, the iOS permission prompt does not appear as expected. Also, the app does not appear under: Settings > Privacy & Security > Camera or: Settings > Privacy & Security > Photos Because of this, the user cannot manually enable the permission. Another user on iOS was able to grant the permissions normally, so the issue appears to be isolated to the device that previously used the TestFlight build. Expected behavior: When the App Store version requests Camera or Photos permission, iOS should display the permission prompt, or the app should appear under Settings > Privacy & Security > Camera/Photos so the user can manage the permission manually. Actual behavior: The permission prompt does not appear, and the app does not appear in the corresponding privacy permission list. Possible cause: It seems like the device may be preserving or reusing a stale privacy permission state from the previous TestFlight installation, since both the TestFlight build and the App Store build use the same Bundle ID. Steps to reproduce: Install the app through TestFlight. Open the app and trigger a Camera/Photos permission request. Grant or deny the permission. Stop testing or remove the TestFlight version. Install the production version from the App Store using the same Bundle ID. Open the App Store version. Trigger the same Camera/Photos permission request flow. Go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Camera/Photos. The app does not appear, or the permission prompt does not behave as expected. Workarounds attempted or suggested: Close and reopen the app. Restart the iPhone. Delete and reinstall the app from the App Store. Stop testing the app from TestFlight. Reset Location & Privacy settings. Question: Has anyone experienced a similar issue where iOS does not show the permission prompt or does not list the app under Privacy & Security after switching from a TestFlight build to the App Store version with the same Bundle ID? Is there a recommended way to fully clear the previous TestFlight permission state, or should this be reported as a possible iOS/TestFlight permission state bug?

I'm developing an iOS application that relies on peer-to-peer discovery and connection using Bluetooth. The expected behavior is: Two iOS devices with the application installed. Both users marked as "visible". When within Bluetooth range, the devices should discover each other and establish a connection. However, the problem occurs when: The application is in the background (minimized) OR The device is locked (screen off). In these states: The devices can no longer be detected. The search returns no nearby devices. Connection could not be established. ChatGPT: What you want to do probably runs into a structural limitation of iOS — it's not a bug. And iOS: severely limits background BLE scanning. reduces advertising frequency. may even stop completely depending on the state (lock screen). In other words: 👉 iPhone was not designed to function as a "continuous radar" between background apps. Apps that do something similar (like AirDrop or Find My): use Apple's private or privileged APIs or combine BLE + Wi-Fi + Ultra Broadband. i need help : /

Hi all, Our team (D36U48VRGM) holds approved Family Controls (Distribution) entitlement on three bundles, all live on the App Store as part of the same app: com.strategieayoub.quranfocus (main app) com.strategieayoub.quranfocus.ShieldAction com.strategieayoub.quranfocus.ShieldConfiguration We've added a fourth target — a DeviceActivityMonitor extension at com.strategieayoub.quranfocus.DeviceActivityMonitor — to replace our current BGProcessingTaskRequest re-shield path. The BGTaskScheduler approach is unreliable for our use case: iOS routinely runs the task hours late or skips it entirely, leaving users' apps unblocked far past the unlock window we promised. DeviceActivityMonitor's intervalDidEnd callback is the only mechanism Apple provides that fires reliably regardless of app state. The new bundle ID is registered, has Family Controls (Development) provisioned, and intervalDidEnd works correctly during local on-device testing. The blocker is Distribution — Xcode's Signing pane shows: "Bundle identifier is using development only version of Family Controls (Development) capability. Please request access to Family Controls (Distribution) to avoid issues when distributing." Two questions: The previous per-asset Family Controls request form has been replaced with a single account-level form that contains no free-text field where I can specify a bundle ID. How does Apple now expect developers with already-approved teams to attach an additional child bundle to that approval? Phone Developer Support said they cannot make entitlement attachments and pointed me back to the form. Is there a documented escalation path? Thanks for any pointers.

I'm working on a MailKit extension and I'm getting a full Mail crash every time I click the Primary Action button in my message banner. I have filed a feedback: FB22513160 Apple's own unsubscribe banner successfully presents a confirmation modal when its primary action is clicked, demonstrating that this flow is intended to work. That behavior does not appear to be accessible to third-party extensions via the documented EMessageSecurityHandler API. Or if it is and I'm missing something, I'd love to know. Thanks!

Hello, with macOS' and iOS' recent updates (26.4.x), Handoff in my app appears to have become dysfunctional, as I receive the following message in the logs: getContinuationStreamsWithCompletionHandler(), inputStream=(null) outputStream=(null) error=Error Domain=NSPOSIXErrorDomain Code=94 "Bad message" UserInfo={NSLocalizedDescription=Could not set up internal streams} It ONLY works: From a Mac with 15.x to other Macs or iOS devices (on 26.4.x). All other combinations (see below) do NOT work: iOS (26.4.x) > iOS (26.4.x) iOS (26.4.x) > Mac (26.4.x) iOS (26.4.x) > Mac (15.x) Mac (26.4.x) > iOS (26.4.x) The Handoff prompt is shown in the Dock on Mac, in the app switcher on iOS, and in the Dock on iPadOS, but once I click/press it, I get the continuationStreams error. Now, is it my app, or the OS? Thank you kindly, – Matthias

Hello, I want to echo the DeviceActivityReport "concurrency" problems flagged in https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/720549, and ask a related question. (Thanks to Kmart and other Apple dev support folks who have been monitoring these forums and responding diligently.) I would like to display daily and weekly stats in the same view, broken down by specific apps (as in the native Screen Time). However, instantiating multiple DeviceActivityReport objects with different filters and/or different contexts leads to confusion, where the two views will incorrectly and intermittently swap data or duplicate data where it shouldn't (seemingly upon some interval when the extension provides fresh data). There isn't documentation on how to display multiple reports at once. Is the idea that logic for multiple reports should be embedded within the extension itself in the makeConfiguration() function and there should only be a single DeviceActivityReport in the main App, or is this a bug? Even with a single DeviceActivityReport, I run into inconsistencies where the View provided by the extension takes multiple seconds to load or fails to load altogether. The behavior seems random...I will build the application with the same code multiple times and see different behavior each time. Finally, a plug for better support in the Simulator for the entire set of Screen Time APIs. Thanks!

Hello, I submitted a request for Family Controls (Distribution) approval, and it has now been over 4 days without any update on the status. I understand that review times can vary, but I wanted to check if this delay is expected or if there’s anything I might need to do on my end to help move the process forward. Could anyone from the Apple team or the community provide insight into: Typical processing times for Family Controls distribution requests Whether delays beyond a few days are common Any steps I should take to follow up or expedite the review For reference: Status: Submitted Submission time: April 21, 2026 Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

I've already submitted multiple cases about this issue. My Family Controls Distribution request was apparently approved (or I was told via Developer Support) for my Shield Action & Shield Configuration extensions, but the Distribution option still does not appear in the identifiers. This is blocking my ability to distribute via TestFlight. I need someone who can update the identifier capabilities or explain why the approved capability is not showing.

I submitted a Family Controls Framework Entitlement request on April 16, 2026 for my iOS app (Team ID: U3BVGVPCEH). After 11 days, the request still shows "Submitted" with no status update or email communication. I submitted two additional requests on April 20 and April 23 thinking the first had failed (no confirmation email was ever received). All three show "Submitted": J5DLD62PNZ — April 16 VV8B272DHZ — April 20 D362NT677B — April 23 I also opened a Developer Support ticket on April 23 with no response yet. Can anyone help me a bit? I cannot distribute my app by Testflight and I need it for my PhD.

Just curious if there is anyway to expedite the FamilyControl entitlement. I have seen few people stuck in this step for few days. I submit mine on the 4/18, and my Case ID: 102874096254 Just want to see if I can see any estimate time for my request. Thanks, Jing

Looks like the Weather Kit API is not responding. I experience the same with Weather App - API is returning 504 HTTP errors I was wondering if I was alone on this situation In this example: in my app the weather complication is consuming my weather provider which is based on Weather Kit Thank you for your answers. Ilyes

I am getting bug reports from users that occasionally the AlarmKit alarms scheduled by my app are going off exactly at midnight. In my app, users can set recurring alarms for sunrise/sunset etc. I implement this as fixed schedule alarms over the next 2-3 days with correct dates pre-computed at schedule time. I have a background task which is scheduled to run at noon every day to update the alarms for the next 2-3 days. Are there any limitations to the fixed schedule which might be causing this unintended behavior of going off at midnight?

Could someone please explain how to use a custom sound when setting up an alarm using AlarmKit? It keeps playing a default sound. Also, I keep having an issue where the alarm sound plays but doesn’t show the alarm interface buttons unless the screen is locked.

Here’s a polished Apple Developer Forums post you can use. I removed personal identifiers such as email, Person ID, Team ID, and DTS Case ID because the forums are public. The post is based on your DTS request and Apple’s response directing you to ask in the Developer Forums.  ⸻ Title Supported public API to open containing iOS app from Share Extension for image/PDF share sheet imports Tags iOS Share Extension UIKit App Intents Uniform Type Identifiers Post Body Hello Apple Developer Forums, We are building an iOS app that needs to receive images and PDFs shared from the system share sheet. The sources include Screenshots, Photos, Files, and third-party apps. The desired user experience is similar to apps such as ChatGPT or Claude: when the user taps our app in the share sheet, the main containing app opens and starts importing or uploading the shared image or PDF. We are trying to understand the supported public API for this behavior. What we have tried CFBundleDocumentTypes We added document type support for: public.image public.png public.jpeg public.heic public.heif com.adobe.pdf This works for some document-open flows, such as opening files from Files or Photos in certain cases. However, it does not make the app appear reliably as a share target from Screenshot Share or from some third-party app share sheets. App Intents We tried using App Intents with IntentFile and: static var openAppWhenRun: Bool = true However, this does not seem to create a general-purpose share-sheet receiver for arbitrary image or PDF NSItemProvider payloads. Share Extension We also implemented a Share Extension that: Receives the shared NSItemProvider. Stores the image or PDF in an app group container. Attempts to open the containing app. However: NSExtensionContext.open(_:completionHandler:) does not appear to foreground the containing app from a Share Extension in the way we need. We also tested responder-chain openURL: trampoline approaches, but those do not work reliably and appear to be unsupported as a public API contract. Questions Is there a supported public API for an iOS app to appear as a share target for arbitrary image/PDF NSItemProvider payloads and then directly open the containing app? If apps such as ChatGPT or Claude appear to switch directly into the main app from the share sheet, is that behavior achievable using public APIs available to third-party developers? If directly opening the containing app is not supported, is the recommended design to perform all upload/import work inside the Share Extension itself? Are App Intents intended to support this kind of share-sheet attachment import flow, either currently or in a future iOS version? Reproduction Steps We created a focused sample project to reproduce the issue. Build and run the app on a physical iPhone. Leave the app installed. Capture a screenshot. Tap the screenshot thumbnail. Tap the Share button. Choose the app’s Share Extension from the share sheet. Observe that the Share Extension receives the image payload. Attempt to open the containing app from the extension. Expected Result The containing app should foreground and receive a URL or other handoff signal indicating that a shared file is available for import. Actual Result The Share Extension receives the image payload and logs the provider type identifiers, but the containing app does not reliably foreground. NSExtensionContext.open does not provide the desired transition, and responder-chain URL-opening workarounds do not appear to be supported or reliable. Minimal Question For image/PDF imports from the iOS share sheet, should the supported implementation be: Share Extension receives the file → Share Extension performs the upload/import itself rather than: Share Extension receives the file → Share Extension opens containing app → Main app performs upload/import Any guidance on the supported architecture would be appreciated. Thank you.

I got 2 crash in my iPad app, didn't konw why. The first crash infomation is: Invalid parameter not satisfying: configuration != nil. The second crash infomation is: /Library/Caches/com.apple.xbs/Sources/UIKitCore/Metrics/_UIListMetrics+Extensions.swift:110: Fatal error: Trait collection does not specify a user interface idiom. Trait collection: <UITraitCollection: 0x133d0e940; DisplayScale = 1, DisplayGamut = P3, HorizontalSizeClass = Regular, VerticalSizeClass = Regular, UserInterfaceStyle = Light, UserInterfaceLayoutDirection = LTR, ForceTouchCapability = Unavailable, PreferredContentSizeCategory = XXL, AccessibilityContrast = High, UserInterfaceLevel = Base, ImageDynamicRange = 0, SceneCaptureState = 0> Can someone help

Hi there, I’m curious to understand how the system determines which language to use for an app. The system is currently set to en-IN (English - India). My app supports the following languages: en (the default development language) en-GB (United Kingdom) en-IE (Ireland) en-US (United States) When I run the app, the Bundle.main.preferredLanguages returns [„en-GB“, „en“], which causes the app to be set to en-GB. However, when the app doesn’t support the preferred system language, I would expect it to default to the en language. Surprisingly, this is not the case. This behavior is precisely described in Technical Note TN2418. Unfortunately, there’s no explanation provided. Is this behavior related to the CLDR Linguistic Distance? I also attempted to replace the default development language en with en-001 (English - world), but it had no effect.

when we launch the application and change the language from german/french to english or any other language then in also it is changing app language, but bluetooth connection screen with pair or cancel alert is showing on previous selected language. Since that alert is system alert, is there any wayto debug/resolve that issue.